National Recreational Trails Program
The Recreational Trails Program (RTP) is an assistance program of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). RTP is administered through the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Recreational Trails Program funds may be used for:
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- Construction of new trails (motorized and non-motorized).
- Maintenance and restoration of existing recreational trails (motorized and non-motorized).
- Access to trails by persons with disabilities.
- Purchase and lease of trail construction and maintenance equipment.
- Acquisition of land or easements for a trail, or for trail corridors.
- Operation of educational programs to promote safety and environmental protection as related to recreational trails.
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DEP may award grants to private nonprofit organizations, municipalities and state departments. Sponsors may submit proposals for any of the permitted uses as listed. Grant amounts vary.
Guidance Document read or download
The Federal FY10 grant round has closed. The deadline for this grant round was September 1, 2009. The new 2011 grant round will be announced on June 1st, 2010 if funds are available (see below Please note..). Preview Application.
Status of RTP Federal FY2010 funding awards: The Recreational Trails Advisory Committee has completed their assessment of 57 proposals requesting over 5 million dollars of funding. With just $1,148,814.00 expected* for distribution, the RTAC had a tough job to do. The proposals listed below and supporting documentation will now be sent to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and then to the Federal Highways Administration (FHWA) for their final review and authorization. DEP will contact all applicants via email when the funding has been authorized, likely between December 2009 and March 2010 (see timeline below).
*Please note that on December 19, 2009, The House and Senate both passed extensions through February 28, 2010 of SAFETEA-LU transportation funding which is the source for the RTP 2010 funds. See http://www.americantrails.org/rtp/ for details and how you can help preserve the RTP as part of a new federal transportation bill.
List of proposals pending SHPO/FHWA authorization
RTP funding approval timeline for federal FY2010:
October - December: Proposals are assessed and ranked by The RTAC.
December - March: SHPO, FHWA (inlcuding CT DOT State Transportation Improvement Program(STIP) Process) give DEP approvals and authorization to release RTP funds.
Once the funds are released, all awardees will enter into contract agreements with DEP to receive the grant funding. No work should be done until you have received an official contract from the DEP, however, you can begin to document your matching contribution up to 18 months prior to your official contract start date.
Previously funded projects.
2005 Projects 2006 Projects 2007 Projects 2008 Projects 2009 Projects
Some of the funded recreational trail projects are posted on the CT Forest & Park Association's Walk CT website. Take a look for a trail near you!
If you have any further questions please feel free to contact Laurie Giannotti at (860) 424-3578 or by email at laurie.giannotti@ct.gov
